Breb Maramures. Our Incredible Village in Romania

Last updated on 19/07/2018 By Alyson Long13 Comments Any post on this site may contain affiliate links. If you use them, they cost you nothing extra. We make a small commission.

In the far north of Romania, nestled in a valley below a long extinct volcano, lies the little village of Breb, Maramures County. We first came to Romania, Maramures and Breb in May 2015 and fell in love. Today, in 2018, we are unable to fully call it home due to visas and officialdom, but to us it feels like home. It’s the place that after 50+ countries and 4 years of full time travel, we really want to be.

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Maramures is a magical county, it’s famously home to the “last peasant culture in Europe” and it’s hard to not notice the immediate difference as you cross by winding mountain road from neighbouring Transylvania. Time really has stood still here but it’s catching up with rural Romania and the traditional way of life won’t last much longer. We were lucky to catch it now, before it disappears forever.

So here, a brief glimpse of life in Breb, 2 Easters, 2 Christmases, 2 harsh winters and 2 glorious summers, absorbing the stunning countryside, the way of life and the traditions of the village of Breb.

Roads in Romania are generally good, despite the bad press you will find elsewhere. Our local roads were recently resurfaced and in winter snow plows keep traffic flowing seamlessly, but no tarmac exists in Breb. Once you arrive you’ll be exploring on dirt lanes, mud and stone and in winter ice lies deep here from October to February. The locals aren’t phased, their horses and carts in summer, horses and sleighs in winter, can cope with anything.

Easter at the village church in Breb. Full florals and Sunday best.

Everyone in the village produces their own food. Meadows grow thick with wildflowers and abundant lush grass all summer long. Villagers cut it with scythes to make the haystacks so characteristic of the region.

In winter these foodstores keep the horses, cows and sheep well fed. Cows inhabit barns and are milked daily, sheep deliver an annual lamb for the Easter feast and milk for cheese afterwards.

Every family raises a piglet or two to slaughter just before Christmas and plump, healthy chickens roam the lanes all year round giving a good supply of eggs. Chickens, dogs and cats cope with winter temperatures just fine, no little dog jackets or booties here.

In spring, around March and April, the weather is right for ploughing and planting and the busy summer growing season begins. Around this time the trees are thick with blossom, getting ready for another years supply of plums, apples and pears.

The spring ploughing festival held in neighbouring village Hoteni, Maramures. April and summer traditional clothes.

Winters are harsh and the weather here allows skiing nearby. In January temperatures can reach -25ºC but crisp, bright days aren’t unusual and it’s still possible to get out for a hike.

November and the snows dust the village while the mountain top ski slopes have long been open.

Christmas traditions are fascinating and the holiday centres around religion, Orthodox and Roman. Don’t be surprised if you see locals dressed in bear skins or strange demon costumes with animal horns and fleeces.

It’s been an incredible and deeply enjoyable few years for us in the fascinating village of Breb. If you’re interested, come now, you won’t be disappointed.

Winter sees a change of traditional outfit, for church, for celebrations and holidays.

Visiting Breb Maramures County

Local embroidery and crafts.

Best Times to Visit Breb

If you possibly can, try to be here for one of the big festivals. Easter is huge but Palm Sunday is also a big church event. The neighbouring village of Hoteni hosts a unique annual ploughing festival ( pictured above) in April and Sighetu Marmatiei holds a large festival of Winter and Christmas traditions just after Christmas. Failing that, be here on a Sunday to see everyone dressed up in full traditional costume, making their way to church.

Spring in Breb, meadows splashed with yellow and trees heavy with blossom as good weather warms the ground.

Weather in Breb is generally superb from March to October.

Most local hotels shut down for winter, particularly January and February, but you will find some open nearby. Don’t try and bring a car into Breb without 4×4 or chains when ice is on the ground.

If you’re sensitive, be aware that you are fairly likely to see lambs and pigs being slaughtered around the village at certain times of year, notably pre Easter and pre Christmas.

How to Get to Breb

A traditional village house in winter.

Our nearest airport is Satu Mare, about 2 hours away by road, but Cluj Napoca, about 3.5 hours away, has far more incoming flights. From Bucharest you can take the overnight sleeper train to Sighetu Marmatiei and from there arrange a pickup or local bus. Hitchhiking is very common in this region. If you need somebody to pick you up, shoot us an email. There are buses from Cluj Napoca to Baia Mare.

Where to Stay in Breb

Just one of the lovingly reconstructed and restored village houses that you can rent at The Village Hotel, Breb. It’s in the heart of our village, surrounded by trees, meadows , birdsong and village life. We’ll see you for a drink down the pub.

Breb has quite a collection of accommodation options these days, including numerous pensiunea, a campsite and hostel, various holiday cottages and, famously, The Village Hotel, Breb, above.

Want to Read More About Breb?

You need to read this book, William Blacker lived here with our villagers a decade ago, before we foreigners and travellers arrived. He shared our village with the world.

Thanks for reading and thanks for being interested. The village and the Maramures region is very special to us. Let us know if you’re coming to Breb, we’ll catch up with you at the village pub if we’re in town. If you need to learn more about travel in Romania, click through.

About Alyson Long

Alyson Long is the creator of World Travel Family travel blog. A lifetime of wanderlust and now over 5 years on the road, full time, has made her a travel expert. She is lover of mountains, cultures and ancient civilisations. Fanatical mum obsessed with her kids' education and happiness. Family travel, travel with kids, adventure travel, homeschooling and worldschooling enthusiast. Former medical scientist, now published writer, SEO ninja and webmaster. Very happy nomad so long as there is coffee.

Comments

We’re taking our family to Romania for the month of September. Breb sounds amazing. Are there any special festivals in September that you know of? Your blog has started to get me excited about our upcoming trip!

Glad I came around to this great post! I’ll be going to Romania in the summer and I’ve been thinking about going to Maramures and Breb. In Romania I would like to stay for a while in some mountain village. Do you know if this is possible in Breb and if not then anywhere else?

Maramures is an area where we keep the traditions alive. We have another part in Moldova as well. I am from Muntenia, but we spent our honeymoon in that part of the country and loved every moment of it. And yes, on Sundays, the villages look truly spectacular: people dressing up in their best traditional suits, going to churches, keeping traditions alive:)

I absolutely love the photos. I found the roads in Romania good, but slow due to the traffic that we faced while driving between cities. I’d love to go back to Romania and I hope to visit in time for a holiday

Very little traffic up in Maramures, unless you count horses and carts, most of our roads were replced year before last, all good and all clear of snow in winter. But in the village it’s 4×4 only, the snowploughs don’t visit.

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